D. Micheal Lyles, Esquire Appoints Tracy Arnold of Arnold Place to the Prince George's County Human Trafficking Task Force

LARGO, Maryland, April 4, 2016 (Newswire.com) - D. Michael Lyles, Esquire - Executive Director, Prince George’s County Human Relations Commission and Chair of The Prince George’s County Human Trafficking Task Force - has appointed Tracy Arnold, Founder and Director of Arnold Place (www.arnoldplace.org), to The Prince George’s County Human Trafficking Task Force (www.mdhumantrafficking.org). Tracy Arnold will open Arnold Place, a safe-haven, in 2016 and impact the state of homelessness as well as become a critical resource in Prince George's County for young female victims and survivors of human trafficking. Arnold will attend her first County Task Force meeting on Tuesday, April 26, 2016.

The County Task Force is an implementing Task Force comprised of more than 50 county government agencies, nonprofits, and individual experts who are brought together pursuant to code CR-74-2013 to tackle human trafficking within Prince George’s County by educating the public and training first responders, providing needed services to victims and survivors, and increasing state and federal prosecution of traffickers.

"Tracy Arnold and her facility, Arnold Place, will bring a needed resource to the County's fight against human trafficking. We look forward to having a facility located in Prince George's County where victims and survivors can be healed and made whole again."

D. Michael Lyles, Esquire, Executive Director, Prince George's County Human Relations Commission and Chair, Prince George's County Human Trafficking Task Force

Tracy Arnold is a community developer; a mortgage expert of twenty-eight (28) years, licensed loan originator, and comptroller. Arnold teaches financial literacy and credit worthiness to empower young ladies in a free 6 month first time home buyers workshop. Arnold is the Visionary and Director of Arnold Place  - a 501(c)(3) dedicated to creating resources for homeless unaccompanied under-resourced teen girls and young moms, 13-22 years of age – pregnant, troubled or HIVAIDS-affected. Arnold Place will open its first innovative transitional home, in Prince George’s County, Maryland in 2016. Arnold implements sustainable mechanisms to reduce costs, encourage recycling, award community service learning hours and engage the community. Organic components will complement this turnkey model.

Task Force goals include securing funding for Task Force operations and securing a facility to provide crisis services to victims and survivors. This facility will serve as a base of operations for all Task Force training and activities. The Task Force aims to produce an awareness campaign focused on youth, provide data collection study on human trafficking in the County, and to broaden first responder training to health care professionals. The Task Force is comprised of county agencies, citizen experts, nonprofit organizations who work with victims,  also federal and statewide organizations. Monthly meetings are held on the 4th Tuesday of every month with the exception of the month of August.

Karen Toles, County Council, Prince George’s County, District 7, is the Task Force Vice-Chair. The Task Force and County Council work conjointly to advance new legislation. Further, The Task Force is diligent in attacking the problem of human trafficking through prevention with programs aimed at stopping the recruitment of boys and girls in middle and high school. Currently, The Task Force seeks the community’s support of the HB623/SB 866 Bill, in Maryland, to vacate convictions of survivors of human trafficking.

Please visit www.mdhumantrafficking.org and www.polarisproject.org. Contact D. Michael Lyles, Esquire at mlyles@co.pg.md.us. For more on Arnold Place, call (202) 431-9811 or visit www.arnoldplace.org. Press inquires for Arnold Place will be received at i501c3pr(at)gmail(dot)com.

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